The coronavirus pandemic has upheaved our daily lives and brought the global economy to a standstill. At a time when the most developed nations of the world have been brought to their knees, it is no surprise that the pandemic has also disproportionately affected third world countries, especially those torn by war. Middle Eastern countries have been characterised by a lack of proper healthcare infrastructure, social security programs, proper access to food and water as a consequence of unstable regimes. All of this is exacerbated by the constant militancy and civil wars that have raged on in these countries since the aftermath of the Arab Spring. The hardships of the Middle Eastern people have worsened with the pandemic, with food insecurity expected to increase.
Food Insecurity Before the Pandemic
The Middle East and surrounding regions have always suffered from food insecurity when compared to the rest of the world. According to a report by the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, “The number of chronically undernourished in the region has doubled from 16.5 million people in 1990–1992 to 33 million people in 2014–2016.”
War and a generally unfavourable climate have persisted for producing and distributing food in the region. This led to a dependence on imports for food, which was a worrying trend. There is a huge deficit between the import and export of food in the region. Even when food was available, it did not lead to a transition of nourished populations. 1 in 5 people in the Middle East and the areas around it have been undernourished. The number of poor in the region is high, and according to the FAO, the poor typically have to spend between 35 and 65 per cent of their income on food. In such a backdrop, food insecurity was likely to worsen with the pandemic.
Food Insecurity in Light of Covid-19
There are several ways the pandemic has worsened food insecurity – several people have lost their livelihoods. Lessening in purchasing power has led to tighter budgets and food becomes difficult to afford. Plus, the quality of food that can be afforded also decreases. People shift to packaged, processed foods and away from fresher foods, leading to a significantly less nutritious diet. But the price of food has definitely risen in the pandemic – In Syria alone, a 200 per cent price hike for basic food has been noted in under a year – a level not seen before in the country’s nine-years of civil war.
This is especially worrying considering that the pandemic has also weakened the already feeble food supply chains. Consider the aforementioned dependence on imported food – restrictions on movement and enforced social distancing is a unique characteristic of the pandemic, which is going to affect trade like never before. The world merchandise trade can drop between 13 and 32% in 2020 due to the pandemic – such occurrences will affect the availability of food. Even domestically, food transportation requires movement which is being restricted as much as possible.
Apart from these obvious ways, there are a host of related problems that the pandemic has brought. Recently, locust outbreaks have affected food crop production. Closing down of borders and restrictions on movement will hinder locust control operations, further deteriorating crop production. In lots of areas, nutrition is provided to children when they go to school. However, with the coronavirus pandemic shutting down schools, another way to access food has become unavailable. From war-torn countries, refugees and asylum seekers cross the borders to get better lives and basic amenities. These displaced people will have to remain in situations with no access to basic amenities such as food and clean water as the pandemic forces borders shut.
Moreover, the region already has a host of diseases. For example, for the last few years, Yemen has also been dealing with an endemic of cholera – between October 2016 and November 2019, over 2.2 million cases of cholera had been reported in the country. With the coronavirus likely to put pressure on the already weak healthcare infrastructure of these regions, these endemics can also worsen. All in all, both pandemic and endemic are slated to disrupt people’s livelihoods and safe access to food.
Conclusion
The region, already having unfavourable factors such as war, locust outbreaks, other endemics and unstable regimes has always suffered from food insecurity. The further unemployment, restrictions on the movement of goods both globally and domestically and rising food prices caused by the pandemic have all led to an even tenser situation. Food insecurity is not just a problem, it is also a cause of different problems. Food insecurity in this pandemic is made dangerous by the perception that “foreigners” bring in the virus. This attitude can lead to discrimination and further shunning of refugees. Limited food supplies in refugee camps can cause strife between local communities and refugees.
The people in this region are already at risk – due to poor healthcare facilities and less nutritious diets, they are likely to have underlying health conditions and suffer from malnutrition. This makes for weaker immunity systems. The region has been engulfed in a vicious cycle – of food insecurity leading to weaker immunity systems, followed by higher cases and more diseases. This, in turn, leads to disruption of food supply chains and hence, food insecurity. The heartbreaking reality is that even if these countries can somehow manage to save their citizens from coronavirus – they might just die from hunger anyway.
